Stepping Up
by Paraddicted
Summary: Paige and Caleb Team up, with some help, to try and help the Liars take down A, meanwhile Emily and Paige try to get back to a good place in their relationship. Established Paily, Haleb, Caige Friendship
1. Chapter 1

AN: Thanks in advanced for reading, all mistakes are my own. Let me know what you think. Can be a sequel to Taking the Gloves Off but can stand alone.

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><p>Paige ducked under the fist hurtling towards her head, using the momentum to thrust her knee into his undefended abdomen. "You getting sloppy on me." She said, grinning as she took two steps back her fists raised in front of her, defending her face.<p>

Caleb smirked, returning to his own starting position. "I'm just checking your reflexes. Plus I have a plan."

"What? Hoping I won't hit you in the face and have Hanna on my case for messing it up?" Paige quipped, feinting left and sending a jab aimed at his torso. Caleb blocked it taking a few steps to the left to try and find an open spot. He landed a punch to Paige's side and took two quick steps back to avoid her retaliation.

"No. I can take care of myself."

Paige snorted, "Sure thing Mr. Marin, remember our first session?"

Caleb flushed, "It's not my fault she appreciates my handsome face."

"Uh huh." Paige smirked moving in again to try and find a weakness in his defense.

After a few more minutes of their work out they called it quits. Paige walked over to their gym bags and retrieved their water bottles, handing one to Caleb as she sat down on the bench next to him.

"I've been thinking about what you said." Caleb broke the easy silence they had fallen into. "I still don't like it, but at this stage I think it's our best shot."

Paige nodded before taking a long sip from her bottle. "I don't like it either, but there are a lot of things we don't know."

"I know. So when are we going to do this?"

Paige paused for a moment wondering what the best approach would be. "I'll make the call. We can meet tonight?"

Caleb nodded, opening his mouth to add something when arms looped around Paige's neck.

"Hey." Emily placed a kiss to her cheek. Paige smiled and leaned back into her arms, turning her head to look at her beautiful girlfriend.

"Hey you. Are you guys done?"

"Yeah, Hanna's just catching her breath."

All three looked over to where Hanna was bent over, hands over her knees. Caleb couldn't help the amused grin that took over his face. This had been Hanna's idea after all, he guessed that she hadn't really taken Emily's fitness level into consideration when they started. He stood up and walked over to her.

Emily immediately took Caleb's place, straddling the bench, facing her girlfriend. "So you and Caleb looked pretty intense out there, and after."

"It's nothing to worry about Em." Paige leaned forward, pressing a kiss to Emily's cheek. "Come on, let's get those two and head home."

It wasn't long after that, that Paige found herself on her bed, pinned underneath Emily, their lips locked in a heated kiss. Her fingers tangled in Emily's hair, as her girlfriend's hand slipped underneath her tank to run her fingers softly over her stomach. Her abdominal muscles rippled under her touch, and she couldn't help the soft moan that broke from her lips. Emily's fingers caressed her side, sliding down to squeeze her hip. When Emily's fingers dipped beneath the waist band of her sweats, Paige flipped them over, she untangled a hand from Emily's hair and grabbed the hand that was slowly, but surely heading down. She pinned it above their heads, lacing their fingers together.

"Em. Wait." She gasped for breath, trying to fight her arousal.

Emily's fingers stroked the side of her girlfriend's face, "What's wrong?"

Paige gulped, her heart and mind racing. "I love you, you know that right?"

Emily smiled, leaning up to kiss her softly. "I know. I love you too."

Paige smiled shyly, a slight blush creeping up her cheeks. "I do want you Em.. in every way and I know we have you know been together before, but I'm just..."

"Hey," Emily ran her fingers down Paige's jaw, "it's okay. We'll get there again."

Paige brought their lips together in a sweet kiss before she scooted off of Emily. "Okay so I'm gonna shower, you can take mine and I'll use the one across the hall." Paige stood up and began gathering whatever she would need. "We'll sort out something to eat after?"

Emily hummed her agreement, an amused smile on her face as she watched her girlfriend move around her room.

With a shy smile Paige left the room and Emily flopped back down on the bed, sighing deeply. She meant what she said, after all that they had been through, they could wait. God all she could think about in the gym was getting Paige hot and sweaty in another way as she watched her girlfriend and Caleb spar. At one point Hanna had to call her back from her day dreams of Paige between her legs, her tongue moving deliciously through her. Emily shuddered and shook her head. She needed a shower. A cold one.

Paige stood outside her bedroom door and waited to hear the sound of the shower turning on. Once it did, she made her way downstairs, slipping her phone out of her pocket and scrolled through her contacts. She took a breath and dialed, bringing the phone to her ear. "It's me. I have a preposition for you."

When Emily finished dressed, forgoing her packed shirt for one or Paige's, she walked downstairs and leaned against the door frame, smiling at the sight that awaited her. Paige had the radio playing softly in the back ground, her wet hair pulled into a messy bun. She was concentrating on preparing their lunch, her back towards the doorway. Emily stalked forward as quietly as she could and wrapped her arms around her girlfriend's waist.

Paige started, kale leaves flying everywhere. "Oh my God! Don't do that!"

Emily chuckled, pressing a kiss to the side of her neck before resting her chin on Paige's shoulder. "I'm sorry, I couldn't resist. What are you making?"

Paige leaned back into her girlfriend's arms, "Well I'm still on a strict diet, so on today's menu, seared salmon with a kale and apple salad."

"Sounds good, need any help?"

Paige set Emily to work on finishing the salad while she put the salmon onto a skillet. It didn't take long until everything was ready. As they ate they discussed their gym session, Emily's new position as assistant coach, as well as their plans for the holiday's. The girls and their partners had planned a Christmas dinner at Spencer's house, since her parents were going to visit Veronica's parents out of town. Paige would be spending the morning with her parents, after which they were heading over to the hospital to help spread some holiday cheer. She would be joining the Fields for lunch.

Their conversation was cut short when Mrs. Fields called, asking Emily to come home to help her with a few chores.

"I wanted to spend the whole day with you." Emily pouted, they were standing on the porch, in front of the McCullers house.

"I'll be over first thing in the morning to help set up the decorations I promise." Paige opened her arms, and Emily immediately stepped into them.

"You better be."

They stood in silence, each wishing their embrace could last longer, until Emily pulled back a little. "I better go before my mom comes looking for me." With a sigh Emily kissed her girlfriend goodbye and headed off. Paige watched her get into her car and drive off before she headed back into the house.

Paige wrapped her arms around herself trying to ward off the cold. Her breath came in puffs and she glanced up and down the dark street, checking for any sign of someone watching her. Once she was sure it was clear, she stepped onto the road and opened the passenger door of an idling car.

"I didn't think you would come." She said once the door was closed. The heat in the car caused her cold body to shiver and she pressed her hands against the vents.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I own nothing, any and all mistakes are my own.

AN: Thank you so much for the reviews, favorites and follows, it's always inspiring to hear back from readers as to what they think about something you've written. This chapter took a little longer than I expected, but here it is. Hope you enjoy. It is 11:42pm 24/12/2014 in South Africa at the moment so I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, hope you all have a blessed day.

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><p>Mona put the car into gear and slowly pulled away, glancing around to check for anything suspicious. With A upping their game, no one was safe. "We have mutual objectives. Where are we going?"<p>

Paige gave her an address and silence filled the car. When they arrived at their destination, Mona raised an eyebrow, a question in her eyes.

"It's low key. Who would think to check here?" Paige rolled her eyes and got out of the car, all the heat that had built up, left her body as a cold wind blew through them.

Paige led Mona into the apartment building. The hallways were dark and in need of some paint. Mona followed Paige and watched as she pulled out her phone and typed. Once she had slipped her phone back into her pocket, she walked over to one of the doors and knocked twice. Mona heard the rattle of a chain being drawn back, and multiple locks turning before the door opened.

Paige ushered her into the room and Mona glanced around, a small smile gracing her lips. "Does Hanna know you're here?" She asked Caleb as he relocked the door.

"I think you know the answer to that Mona." Caleb's tone was short and curt. He brushed past her and retook his seat in front of his computer. A code was running, a half empty cup of coffee near it.

Mona took in the room, a huge white board took up most of one wall. On it was pictures of various people all linking to the four girls who were all linked directly to Alison. The corner of her mouth tilted into a slight smirk when she spotted her own picture. "This is quite an A setup. There are things missing though."

Paige and Caleb both looked up from the computer, watching as she walked closer.

"Jenna is directly connected to Alison twice. First from the firecracker and then, when Alison threatened her about coming back to Rosewood."

Both Paige and Caleb moved closer to the board. Caleb picked up a marker and added the new information.

"Anything else?" Caleb asked, the marker tip hovering a few centimeters from the board.

"A lot actually, Nigel Wright isn't on here and while I don't think he's A material he did help. Someone better make some coffee, we're going to be here a while."

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><p>Paige couldn't help the dopey smile taking up half her face as she watched her Christmas crazy girlfriend stringing up Christmas lights. Emily was humming Jingle Bell Rock, swaying as she did. Paige shook her head, the smile never leaving her face as she began arranging the upstairs porch. Hanna and Caleb were busy setting up the manger, and she was pretty sure Emily would be over there soon rearranging whatever she though wasn't perfect.<p>

Emily had told her before that Christmas was her favorite holiday, and today she found out why. It was always the holiday both her and her mom, knew her dad would definitely be back for which made it extra special. The morning had started off with them unpacking the many boxes of decorations that took up most of the Fields attic space. By the time they had the boxes all out, they decided to break for lunch, ordering some pizza. Which Emily swore she would help Paige work off, causing Hanna to smirk, Caleb to choke on the bite he had taken and Paige to blush. After a flustered Emily explained that she meant working out in the gym or running a trail with Paige, everyone went back to their food.

By the time they had all the decorations done, exhausted was an understatement, Emily shut the door behind Hanna and Caleb and crawled on top of her girlfriend.

Paige shifted on the couch until they were both comfortable and began to stoke her fingers up and down Emily's back.

"Hmm that feels nice." Emily sighed, her eyes closing.

Paige pressed a kiss to the top of Emily's head. She wanted moments like this to last forever, away from Stanford deadlines and school, and A. Her bottom lip slipped between her teeth as she wondered for the umpteenth time about telling Emily about her and Caleb's plan. The last time they had did this, both Emily and Hanna had freaked out on them. Sure they had stopped for a while but A hadn't, and since A seemed to focus more on the girl's, they slipped under radar.

"What are you thinking about?"

Paige had been so wrapped up in her thoughts she hadn't realized Emily had shifted and was now staring down at her. Paige lifted her hand and gently brushed a few hairs behind Emily's ear, a small smile tugging at her lips. "I'm wondering what I'm going to get you for Christmas."

"You don't have to, but I'm sure I'd love anything you get. Mostly because it's from you."

Emily leaned down and connected their lips, before she could go anywhere with the kiss, the front door opened and they sprang apart as Pam Fields entered.

"Hi girls." Pam lugged a few grocery bags inside and Emily and Paige immediately got up to help her. Once they finished unloading the car, the girls set about helping Pam unpack the bags.

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><p><em>Before school. Blue Light Cafe.<em>

Paige glanced at the text again, and slipped her phone into her pocket. Caleb set a cup of coffee in front of her, and she cradled the hot cup in her hand, feeling some of the chill that seemed to sit in her bones leave. "Thanks."

"She's late." Caleb sat back, and crossed his arms, unimpressed.

"I'm never late." Mona walked over and took the open seat next to Paige. "I know you are still uncomfortable with this... partnership," She directed at Caleb, "but in the spirit of honesty I thought you both should know the girls came to see me."

Both Paige and Caleb sat forward. "What did they want?" Paige beat Caleb to the punch.

Mona smiled and sat back in her chair, her fingernails drumming on the wooden table. "The same thing we want. To end this."

"So what do you have in mind?" Caleb asked.

"Well it's quite simple. We want the same information the girls want, so I'm going to help them." Mona paused when a waitress came over to give her, her drink. When she left, Mona continued, "Alison is doing a polygraph today, I'm going to get the footage. The girls were warned to not tell anyone, but I'm going to need some help with getting it while I'm busy somewhere else. Hanna will probably tell you. So when the time comes, I'll let you know where to meet us." Mona directed the last few sentences at Caleb, sipping her coffee when she finished.

"So that's it?" Caleb asked, folding his arms across his chest.

"No. Paige, people know that you aren't with me or Alison. Keep your ear to the ground, we need to know who is with Alison and who's against her." Mona checked her phone and drained her cup. "I'll keep in touch." She stood and left.

"I still don't like this." Caleb rubbed his eyes and leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table.

Paige watched Mona cross the street through the window. "I think I get her."

"What do you mean?" Caleb looked up, interested.

Paige met his gaze, and Caleb could see a range of emotion raging in her eyes. "It's hard to explain, but I know what she's been through. How it made her feel. She's going through this darkness, I've been there and it's a scary place."

"Aren't you scared you might end up back there?" Caleb paused. "You don't have to do this you know. Especially since you and Emily are still getting back into things."

Paige laughed softly, "We're in this for the same reason." She dropped her gaze to her half empty cup. "I'd rather have Emily safe and happy with or without me than living like this. I won't fall back down the rabbit hole, don't worry. Thanks again for the coffee."

Caleb watched, concerned, as Paige stood and left.

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><p>The relief Paige felt when she walked into the locker room, finding it empty, had her slumping on the bench. The population of Rosewood High was split into three groups, those who were on Mona's side, those who were attempting to be as Mona so eloquently put it 'Social Switzerland' and those who believed Alison's fake kidnapping story. She had yet to get a more accurate count of who was really on Alison's side but the list was growing at an alarming rate.<p>

She rolled her shoulders, trying to get rid of some of the tension that had taken up permanent residence there. Mona would be working on the polygraph test video, so she could give her whatever information she had later.

Hands landed on her shoulders, at the same time as a voice spoke out. "Are you okay?"

Paige stiffened at the contact and then, relaxed when she realized who it was. "Yes, Coach Fields." Paige grinned, tilting her head up to look at her girlfriend.

"I was wondering where you were, the girls are in the pool already." Emily's fingers moved gently against the tensed muscles. "You're very tense."

"I think I slept funny." Paige relaxed completely under Emily's touch, biting her lip to stop the moan clawing its way up her throat.

"Why don't you come over later? My mom's out with some friends so we can order something, and I could give you a proper massage?"

Paige stiffened slightly at the offer and turned her head to raise an eyebrow at Emily.

"No funny business," Emily raised her hand, "I promise. Okay?"

Paige nodded, a small smile playing on her lips. "Okay."

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><p>After a hot shower, that helped to relax her a bit, Paige decided to phone Emily to find out if she should pick up something from the Grille on her way over. Her eyebrows furrowed when Emily told her she was feeling unwell. Even though Emily had told her she was going to head to bed, Paige knew that Emily probably wouldn't worry about eating and head straight to bed, which is how she found herself ducking behind some bushes, a thermos of chicken soup in her hand, watching Alison DiLaurentis leave her girlfriend's house.<p>

Paige shifted, trying to get a look at who was inside of the car Alison had jumped into. After catching a glimpse of Cindy and Mindy, Paige hurried to her car, and followed making sure they wouldn't noticed her. After driving for a few miles, at the end of Rosewood, they turned off onto a dirt road. Paige killed her lights and followed carefully, her jaw dropped at the amount of cars that were parked in front of an old barn, and she watched as people began to emerge from them, following Alison inside.

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><p>AN: Thanks again for reading, let me know what you think.<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I own nothing, all mistakes are my own.

AN: Thank you for the reviews, follows and favorites. its a little shorter than the first two chapters but I hope you enjoy it. I hope everyone has an amazing new year.

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><p>Paige paced the length of her room. Her fingers turning her phone over and over again. She glanced down at it, noting that it was still too early to call. She had sent Emily a few messages asking her to phone her as soon as she could, they had gone unanswered. She paused her pacing when her parents began getting ready for work, her mom stopped in to make sure she was awake, before disappearing down the stairs to begin preparing breakfast.<p>

It was midway through a forced down bite that Paige's phone finally buzzed next to her plate. She was about to pick it up and answer it when her dad's stern gaze stopped her. No phones during meals. It was a rule he had enforced more after her coming out. Breakfast and most dinners was saved for family time when her dad wasn't working late, or her parents were out of town.

Paige retracted her hand, returning it to her fork, she scooped up some scrambled eggs, even though her stomach was churning with worry. When she was done she rinsed her plate, putting it into the dishwasher. After drying her hands, she grabbed her bag and kissed her parents goodbye.

As soon as she closed the front door her phone was at her ear.

_"Hey Paige, everything okay?" _

"Where are you?" Paige unlocked her car and slid in.

_"I'm at the Brew. Tell me what's wrong!" _Emily demanded as Paige started her car.

"I'll be there now." She cut the call, tossing her phone onto the passenger seat and left her driveway.

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><p>Emily was standing with her friends when Page walked in, a hot flask of coffee in her hand. She walked up to the liars and spoke before Emily could ask the question she was about to. "I came to your house last night and Alison was there-"<p>

Emily cut into the sentence, "I'm sorry I lied-" Paige shook her head causing Emily to stop.

"You can tell me why you lied later," Paige glanced around and then leaned closer, dropping her voice to an almost whisper. "I followed Alison after she left Emily's. Guys she's building an army."

As she finished her sentence detective Holbrook and a few uniforms entered the Brew. "Spencer Hastings. You are under arrest for the murder of Bethany Young." As he spoke two of the uniforms moved towards Spencer, slipping and locking the handcuffs around her wrists. "Anything you say can and will be held against you in a court of law.."

The rest of her rights were drowned out by the shouting of promises from her friends and boyfriend, to get her out as soon as they could.

The flurry of activity died down after a few minutes, the girls were focused on Toby, who was trying to get a hold of Spencer's parents.

Paige took the few minutes of their distracted state to slip away and phone Caleb. "Spencer was just arrested at the Brew." Paige informed him as soon as he answered.

Caleb swore, _"I thought she had more time. Any way you can meet me now? I'll fill you in on what you missed yesterday."_

Paige agreed and ended the call when Caleb told her where to meet him. She just slipped her phone into her pocket when Emily came up behind her.

"Paige?"

Paige turned around and faced her.

"Toby got a hold of Spencer's parents. Their heading over to the precinct right now." Emily fidgeted with the hem of her apron, her eyes downcast, "About last night.."

"Em," Paige stepped forward placing her hand over Emily's fidgeting ones. "Look I'm not thrilled that you lied, even though you didn't need to, but I get it." She glanced around and leaned forward, dropping her voice again, "A has upped their game and I know you guys are trying to figure it out. I can't stop you, I know that now. Just... be honest with me when you can and I'll do the same okay?"

"Okay." Emily smiled slowly, turning a hand to interlace their fingers and squeeze her girlfriend's hands. "I'm gonna see if they have any news about Spencer."

"I've got some errands to run, so I'll see you a little later."

Emily nodded and began pulling away when Paige pulled her flush against her body, pressing a kiss to her lips that left her breathless.

"Be careful." Paige urged before she turned and walked out of the Brew.

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><p>She met Caleb at the cabin, after she relayed what happened at the Brew as well as the information about Alison's new army, Caleb began filling her in on the polygraph that had Alison basically pointing the finger at Spencer.<p>

Paige sat back, rubbing her eyes, it had been an exhausting night and the day wasn't turning out any better. "Sometimes I think we're just going in circles."

"I know what you mean." Caleb sighed, "Do you think it's her? Alison I mean."

"Alison being A? I've thought about it, especially with the tricks she's pulled since she's been back. On some level though I don't think she would do this to the girls." Paige paused for a moment to try and get her thoughts in order. "In some way I think she does care for the girls, don't get me wrong in no way do I think she's a saint. She tore them down and they built themselves up stronger than before. I've been at the end of Alison's bullying, this is different...I could be wrong. Sometimes I feel like we'll only know who A is once they stand up on stage and announce themselves."

"I feel like that sometimes." Caleb admitted, "Sometimes I feel like the answer is right in front of us."

Paige sighed and stood up, "It probably is, and maybe we're looking at it from the wrong angle. Instead of who we know is connected to all of the girls and Alison, we should think about who lost the most before Alison disappeared."

Caleb's brows furrowed, "You have a good point. Let's wait to see what Mona gets from the Radley files and we'll meet up at the room and try that way."

Paige agreed and left shortly after. Her plan was to attempt to get an hour or two of sleep before heading over to their lair. Her thoughts were so focused on making a mental list of all the bullying that she had witnessed that it took a few rings to alert her to the fact that her phone was ringing. She pressed the button on her steering and Caleb's voice came through the speakers.

_"Mona called. She has something. I'll meet you at her house now." _

After the call was cut, Paige changed directions heading into the opposite side of Rosewood. She reached Mona's house first and when she opened the door of her car and got out she heard the first scream.

She darted up the path and took the porch steps two at a time. She burst through the door, her eyes immediately finding a bloody Mona on the floor, a black hoodie standing over her, knife in hand. Paige charged, the few seconds of surprise giving her an advantage. She shoulder tackled the hoodie, feeling something in her shoulder move as they landed hard on the floor, the knife clattering to the floor.

They rolled over, each trying to pin the other, from beneath the hoodie Paige could see an Alison mask, green eyes narrowed at her. Paige managed to get the advantage and successfully pinned the person under her. She moved to remove the mask when she heard something connected with her head, white light burst across her vision as pain radiated through her head. The force of the blow moved her off the person and onto the floor and a split second later darkness followed.

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><p>AN: Let me know what you think, constructive criticism is always welcome.<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I own nothing. All mistakes are my own.

AN: Thank you for all the reviews, views and favorites. I had hoped to update earlier but life happens, but here it is. Hope you enjoy.

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><p>She could hear muffled voices, and the most annoying beeping sound, the beeps radiated though her skull, and her brows furrowed at the pain it caused. She felt a soft, warm familiar hand in hers and she could make out the voices now, it seemed like Emily and Hanna were having a whispered argument.<p>

"Come on Em, we have to wake her up. She was there, she knows what happened to Mona!"

"She was hit hard Hanna. Just back off!"

Paige's eyes opened slowly, blinking rapidly to try and clear her vision. She was definitely in the hospital, the bright light caused the pain in her head to intensify and she groaned loudly as she shut her eyes.

"Paige?" Emily squeezed her hand, brushing stands of hair off her girlfriend's forehead.

"What happened?"

A glare from Emily stopped Hanna from answering Paige's question and Hanna held her hands up in surrender.

"A attacked Mona and you."

It came back to Paige suddenly, her talk with Caleb, going to Mona's house, Mona on the floor covered in blood. She sat up, and her head spun. Emily gently helped her lay back and Paige tried to raise her hands to press her fingers against her temples but found that her right arm had been strapped to her body.

"Is Mona..?" Paige trailed off unwilling to imagine it.

"From what Caleb told us you got there just in time and then thankfully he did too. Mona's in the operating room. Aria and my mom are with Mrs. Vanderwaal and Mike." Emily answered as she helped her girlfriend get comfortable.

"Em?" Paige looked at Emily and then down at her arm.

"The doctor said it's a partial dislocation." Emily offered at Paige's questioning look, the look turned to horror. "It's partial, they set it while you were still unconscious. He said if you make sure to let it heal and go for physical therapy it shouldn't affect your swimming too much."

Hanna glanced at Emily before continuing, "What were you doing there Paige?"

Paige met her girlfriend's eyes and saw the many questions in them. She was saved from answering them when her parents, followed a doctor walked in.

Emily, after pressing a kiss to the back of Paige's hand, excused herself and Hanna and left the room to let them talk.

"Are you okay?" Hanna asked Emily as they took a seat on the chairs across the hall from Paige's room.

Emily rubbed her face, she hadn't expected to see Paige's car parked outside of Mona's house. Caleb had gotten there before them and when she stepped into the house her stomach had dropped at the sight of so much blood. They heard the sirens in the background heading towards them, but all Emily could focus on was her girlfriend's still, form. Paige's face was covered in blood, and for a moment she felt like she couldn't breathe. Hanna rushing passed her seemed to set the world in motion again, and while Hanna and Caleb tried to stem the wounds Mona had received from A, Emily and Aria moved to Paige trying to find the site of her wound and stop the bleeding. What felt like hours but was probably only a few short minutes later the Paramedics arrived and took over. Wasting no time in stabilizing and loading the two victims up. Aria drove her and Hanna, who was on the phone with Mona's mother, to the hospital. Caleb stayed to give his statement to the police officers who had shown up with the ambulances. The rest of the day had been a blur of pacing until Emily's mom showed up, informing them that the McCullers were on their way back from Scranton. Emily had calmed down when Paige was wheeled into her room, the doctor took pity on her and informed her that baring a concussion and a partially dislocated shoulder Paige was okay.

"She's alive, so I'm okay. What about you?" Emily laid a comforting hand on Hanna's forearm.

"I think I'm still in shock." Hanna shook her head. It had been a long day.

"You sure you don't want to go to Mrs. Vanderwaal?"

Hanna chewed on her lip, it wasn't that she didn't want to be there. She was scared of what the doctors might come out and say to them. She glanced up at Paige's room window, it looked like there was a fight going on inside. "I think I'll go. It looks like you gonna have some damage control to do." She nodded towards the window

Emily glanced up, her eyebrows raising slightly at the scene. "Text me if you need me okay?" Emily gave her a one armed side hug.

Hanna nodded and stood walking towards the waiting room of the operating rooms. Emily watched her leave, her attention brought back to her girlfriend when Mr. McCullers stormed out of the room and down the hall.

"Could you stay with her?" A flustered Mrs. McCullers asked Emily as she hurried to catch up with her husband. Emily waited until the doctor left before she entered Paige's room.

Paige swiped angrily at the tears that had fallen, the muscles in her jaw flexing.

"Paige?" Emily took a few steps forward, stopping when Paige shook her head and held up her hand to ask her to stop.

"Just give me a minute okay?"

Emily could hear her take a couple of deep breaths trying to calm herself down. She retook her seat next to the bed and began to play with Paige's fingers. Her fingers tips grazing her palm, up to her wrists and then all the way up her forearm and back again. When Paige's breathing returned to normal, Emily glanced up and found Paige watching their hands. She continued her ministrations waiting until her girlfriend was ready to speak.

"My parents want me to go to California." Paige finally broke the silence. "They say Rosewood has become too dangerous, and since I have enough credits to graduate early. They want me to move there."

Emily's fingers stilled, "Do you want to go?" Emily asked after a few seconds of silence.

Paige shook her head. "No."

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><p>Emily pushed the wheel chair Paige was currently in towards the waiting room. Her girlfriend had argued against it, but when she attempted to stand up and swayed dangerously, she finally relented and allowed Emily to help her into it.<p>

Hanna was sitting next to Mona's mom, holding her hand. Mrs. Vanderwaal looked distraught her bloodshot eyes fixed on the door, waiting for any kind of news. Mike and Aria were next to them, Mike's fingers laced together, propping his chin up. Emily wheeled them closer and when she had settled them on the other side of Hanna, Emily laced her fingers with Paige's and they too turned their attention to the door.

It was late when Mona's doctor finally came through the doors and Mrs. Vanderwaal was on her feet, moving towards him before the doors had swung shut again. They talked quietly and then suddenly Mrs. Vanderwaal hugged the doctor. Everyone waited with bated breaths until she returned and relayed the news.

"She's pretty banged up but she's alive, she's okay. He said she was lucky the knife missed most of her major arteries and organs, but they've managed to repair the damage done to her liver." Mrs. Vanderwaal relayed to the group, "She'll be moved into a recovery room."

Hanna was the first to react, standing up to hug the older woman. "I'm glad she's okay."

"I am too." Mrs. Vanderwaal glanced at Paige over Hanna's shoulder as if seeing her for the first time. "Thank you. For my daughter."

Paige nodded, a small smile gracing her lips. She turned her attention to Emily, who leaned closer. "Can you take me back to my room please?"

Emily nodded, stood and after they said their goodbyes, wheeled Paige back. While they had been sitting and waiting to hear about Mona's condition, Emily couldn't help but wonder what Paige had been doing at the Vanderwaal home. She had sat and bit her lip in order not to ask but she needed to know. She helped Paige to get into bed, feeling slightly guilty for what she was about to bring up because her girlfriend looked so tired, and it had been a long day.

Paige took one look at Emily's conflicted face and knew what was coming. "Em? Could you come lay here? Just for a little while?"

"Of course." Emily put the railing down on Paige's uninjured side and got up on the bed next to her, carefully curling herself into her side. Paige put her arm around Emily's shoulders and pulled her closer. "You really scared me today…I thought…" Emily's words trailed off and Paige pressed a kiss to her temple.

"I'm sorry for scaring you." Paige took a breath, "I know you want to know why I was there, I can see it every time you look at me. Remember what I told you at the Brew earlier? I don't want to lie to you Em, and I know that given my records that it isn't easy, but I'm asking you to trust me. And when the time is right I'll tell you everything."

Emily chewed on the inside of her cheek and pulled away slightly so that she could look into her girlfriends eyes. "I don't like secrets between us."

"We all have our secrets, but this one…for right now its best that only those involved know."

Emily opened her mouth to argue and Paige shook her head, "Please. Just trust me."

With her mouth set in a grim line, Emily gave a reluctant nod. "You'll tell me soon."

"I promise. Now please come here."

Emily relented and resumed her position, her mind doing a mile a minute trying to figure out what Paige was up to.

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><p>AN: Let me know what you think, constructive criticism is welcomed.<p> 


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I own nothing. All mistakes are my own.

AN: Thanks for all the reviews, favorites and follows. I want to shout out a friend of mines two fics **nick2951** is writing two awesome stories so give them a look. Being Dead Sucks in which Mona comes back as a ghost to help solve her own murder. And Sweet Sacrifice, where Mona and Spencer take on Alison together.

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><p>Paige was released the next day, the doctor had given her the number of a physical therapist and she was due to start as soon as the sling came off. She had arranged with Caleb to pick her up while everyone was in school, giving her a chance to get around being questioned. They had stopped by Mona's room to check if she had woken up yet, but were greeted by the sight of Mrs. Vanderwaal asleep on the arm chair in one corner, and Mike next to the bed, his head resting close to Mona's hand which was clasped between his own. Mona had yet to wake up, but the doctor had assured Mona's mother who had then told Hanna, that it was her body's way of dealing with such a huge trauma.<p>

Everyone was waiting with bated breaths for her to wake up and tell them what had happened. Caleb picking her up also gave Paige the opportunity to catch up and hear what had happened after she had been taken to the hospital. Caleb told her about the super computer Mona had left in his possession, stating that all of the hacking they needed to do would be quicker and easier to do with it. He also informed her about Spencer, her parents were working hard to get bail for their daughter. The police had done a sweep at Mona's house but had come up empty for any DNA except for Mona, Paige and Mrs. Vanderwaal.

It seemed that all the puzzle pieces were with Mona.

Paige's parents weren't home when they got to her house, and for the first time in years, Paige was actually glad for it. The last time had been after Alison faked the note from Emily, she had ridden home with eyes filled with angry, scared tears and locked herself in her room.

She led Caleb inside and headed straight to the kitchen. After pouring them both something to drink, she sat down next to him, his computer open in front of them.

"Okay, so I was thinking about what you said," Caleb began, opening up a file, "Since we can't run the risk of going to the lair, in case A is watching, we kind of have to start over from scratch." Caleb began typing, and multiple windows running code opened. "I've been thinking about what you said, and I think you might be onto something. Whoever A is must have lost a great deal to do revenge like this. I managed to save all the information to my computer, it's all encrypted."

"Okay so let's start from the beginning, list of suspects."

They worked until Paige's head began pounding, bringing into focus just how hungry she was. Caleb conceded to a break, allowing for food to be ordered and for Paige to take her meds. They had gotten quite a bit done, and as they worked Caleb added an extra encryption, trying his best to make sure that it would be extremely difficult to impossible to open. He had just placed the order for some Chinese when the doorbell rang. Hearing Paige make no movement from upstairs to get the door, he closed his laptop and got up, opening the door as the person rang the bell again.

"Caleb? What are you doing here?" A surprised, coffee baring Emily asked.

"Hey Emily, come on in." Caleb stepped aside to let her in.

Emily stepped inside, her eyebrows raised in suspicion.

"Paige asked me to pick her up from the hospital, her parents were sorting out the cancellations they had to make to get back, and you had school so she didn't want to pull you away." Caleb explained and Emily's suspicion dimmed a bit. "She's upstairs, I'm sure she'll be down in a bit."

Emily set the two coffees on the table. "I'm going to check up on her. You can grab one, I didn't know you were gonna be here." She gestured towards the coffee cups.

Caleb picked up the coffee cups and took them to the kitchen counter he and Paige had been sitting at, he took this time to put his laptop away in case questions came up about it.

Emily headed up to the stairs and stopped outside of Paige's room. The door was slightly ajar, and inside Paige was fumbling with the buttons of the grey and black plaid shirt she had just pulled on. Emily couldn't help the smile that tugged at her lips as she watched her girlfriend get adorably frustrated. Taking pity on her, Emily knocked softly and pushed the door open. Even though she had knocked Paige was still startled, grabbing the edges of her shirt to hold them close.

"Need some help?"

Paige breathed a sigh of relief and let the edges of her shirt go. "Please."

Emily closed the distance between them in a few short steps, her eyes were locked with Paige's as she did the buttons up. "I thought you would have called."

"Didn't want to pull you out of school." Paige swallowed hard, Emily's eyes always had this effect on her, it felt as though she was looking right down into the core of her being. She knew this was one of those situations where Emily could ask her anything and she'd have a hard time not answering.

Emily opened her mouth to ask when the sound of the doorbell broke the trance they'd settled into.

"Must be the food." Paige muttered, taking a small step backwards. She picked up the sling from her bed, and Emily helped her put it back on. "Come on."

"Paige," Emily placed a hand gently on her uninjured shoulder, stopping her from leaving the room, "I don't think I could handle you getting hurt again."

Paige turned and took Emily's hand, she brought it to her lips. "I can't promise that I won't get hurt, but I can promise that if I do? It'll be for something good."

"Pai-" Emily started, but was cut off by Paige's lips on hers. "P-" She tried again, and again she was stopped.

"I can do this whole day." Paige mumbled against her lips.

Emily pulled back, shaking her head, but unable to stop the small smile tugging at her lips. "Just promise me you'll be careful."

"I promise."

Emily finally allowed Paige to lead her out of the room and downstairs to a waiting Caleb. He had divided the food between the three of them.

Emily filled them in on Spencer as they ate. Her parents had managed to get her bail, and they were working on the conditions of her release. It wasn't long before Emily was excusing herself, her shift at the Brew about to begin.

Paige and Caleb got back to work as soon as she left, but soon got frustrated. Alison had made many enemies and they were no closer to narrowing down the A list.

Caleb sighed, slouching in his seat. Paige placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. She understood the frustration, they had so much of the puzzle, but not enough to complete the picture.

Paige got up and put the kettle on, maybe a short break would help them find a new angle.

"Do you think Mona's gonna wake up any time soon?" Caleb asked, causing Paige to turn around.

"I don't know. I hope so."

"Do you think she'll remember what she found before the attack?"

Paige turned back to making coffee, "Well the doctor said it was a huge trauma. I guess we can only hope that she does."

There was silence until Paige brought two cups to the table and retook her seat. "I think we need more help atleast until Mona wakes up."

"Maybe a different person will see something we're missing. Maybe someone who will be able to fill in some of the gaps?" Caleb agreed. "Spencer?"

Paige couldn't help but laugh. "Is it weird that I was thinking the same thing?"

Caleb let out a laugh of his own, shaking his head. "Nah." His expression darkened. "I'm sure she'll be out for blood once she's out."

Paige nodded, asking for her help would be asking a lot of Spencer. Especially with all the drama that had surrounded her lately, but Caleb was right. Spencer would be out to pin down whomever was framing her and clear her name. With that kind of focus, as well as everything she knew that they didn't maybe, just maybe they'd be able to blow A right out of the water.

They parted ways when Paige's parents arrived, Caleb had to pick Hanna up from the hospital, and he was using it as an opportunity to check up on Mona.

Dinner was a mostly silent affair, her father was still angry at her refusal to graduate early, her mother played peace keeper, causing stunted conversation.

When Paige finally retired to her room, she felt exhausted, she changed as quickly as she could and arranged her pillows so that she would be comfortable without putting too much weight on her shoulder and as soon as her head hit the pillow she was asleep.

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><p>AN: Next chapter will be a bit of a time jump closer to Christmas, Caige + Spencer will put their heads together to narrow down the suspect list. Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed. Let me know what you think.<p> 


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I own nothing. All mistakes are my own.

AN: Thank you for the reviews, favorites and follows, it really makes my day to hear what you all think. Uhm well this one kind of wrote itself and took a while to get to a place to stop. It is definitely the longest I've ever written. Hopefully you enjoy.

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><p>The days seemed to speed by the closer they got to Christmas. Mona had yet to wake up, but the doctors were confident that it would be any day now. Hanna, with Caleb in tow, would check up on her every day, hoping that it would be the day she woke up. Paige had finally got rid of the sling and was getting her range of motion back, determined to be back in the pool sooner rather than later.<p>

They had approached Spencer as soon as they had the chance, and they had added her information to theirs cutting down the suspect list significantly. Spencer had shared the information they had uncovered at Radley about Alison knowing Bethany, as well as sharing the girls Alison is A theory with them. Caleb and Paige could see where the girls were coming from, and after Spencer left the cabin they had added to their A board, putting down everything Spencer had shared with them.

They weren't all that sold on the idea of Alison being A, since she herself had been attacked, but the truth of her kidnapping story, as well as the deal she made with Cyrus had them doubting her innocent.

A week before Christmas, the fliers for the Ice Ball hosted by the Dilaurentis family started to pop up, which had the girls scoffing at the thought of even attending.

Paige was going to be spending the weekend at the Fields while her parents went apartment hunting in San Francisco. She had rolled her eyes when her parents told her where they were heading, but couldn't help but be excited at the prospect of getting to spend the weekend with Emily.

She was sitting on one of the couches in the Brew, watching Emily work instead of doing the homework she had intended on doing that afternoon. Emily stopped by to check on her, and to steal a quick kiss now and again. She had just given up on her work and closed her books when Caleb and Hanna strolled in. Hanna made a beeline for her, while Caleb ordered their drinks.

"Hey! What are you doing right now?" Hanna asked as she sat down on the sofa.

Paige held up her hands and shrugged. "Watching Em work."

"Aw. Okay, so Emily's shift will be done soon. Caleb and I are going to the movies and you two are coming with." Hanna held up a hand to stop any arguments. "No if's and's or but's. It's great that you and Caleb have been spending time together, but you've been neglecting us."

"I.."

"Great, I'll go tell Em." Hanna got up and left, leaving Paige wondering what she had just gotten them into. Caleb sat down next to her, a slight smirk on his face.

"I'm guessing Hanna roped you in huh?"

Paige could just nod, her eyes glued to her beaming girlfriend who glanced over at her at the same time Caleb spoke.

Not long after they found themselves seated in the theater, Paige and Emily sat in the last row, with Hanna and Caleb sitting a few rows down and to the side of them. Emily's laugh caused Paige to smile and look over at her, wondering what caused her merriment. She jerked her head in the direction of Hanna and Caleb and Paige joined her laughter. The two were attached at the lips and it was only the first trailer.

With Em cuddled into her side, as best as she could with the arm rest between them, Paige felt content. She was focused more on dragging her fingertips up Emily's bare forearm, than the movie. If someone asked her later what the movie was about she would draw a blank. Right now she was focused on the feeling of velvet soft skin beneath her finger tips. Her fingers had drifted up to Emily's inner elbow. She wondered what life would be like if her girlfriend wasn't plagued by A. Would they have more carefree moments? She wouldn't be forced to graduate early and they could have went to college together.

She felt her phone buzz in her pocket and her eyebrows furrowed. Her parents usually called her around 9 and it was just past 7. She slipped her phone out of her pocket and after glancing at the screen, she slipped it back in.

"I'm just going to the bathroom." She whispered to Emily, giving her a quick kiss before she got up and headed out.

Her phone started vibrating again when she neared the exit of the theater.

"Spencer? Is everything okay?"

_"I have a plan, but I need you and Caleb to help me convince the others. Where are you?"_

"I'm at the movies with Em, Hanna and Caleb."

She heard Spencer sigh. _"How long until you're done?" _

"About an hour."

_"Okay meet me at your house then. Bring Caleb." _

Before she had a chance to reply Spencer cut the call. The crease in Paige's forehead deepened and she shook her head, wondering what Spencer was about to get her into.

When she got back in, Emily's smile, and the feel of her head on her shoulder made her forget the worries about what Spencer had planned and she knew that she really would do anything to protect Emily.

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><p>They dropped the girls off at Emily's house, with the promise of bringing back some ice cream. They had used the excuse of Paige wanting to go get some things she had forgotten that she needed.<p>

Spencer was waiting in her car when they got there and they quickly headed inside.

"So what's this plan?" Caleb asked as he took a seat at the kitchen counter.

Paige took the seat next to him, and Spencer stood across from them on the other side of the counter.

"I've been trying to evidence to prove that Alison is A. Trying to find a way to connect her to Bethany Young." Spencer began pacing. "So far all I've got on a possible connection is Mrs. DiLaurentis being on the board at Radley. But I think I found the perfect distraction to find anything that could connect the dots."

"A distraction for?" Paige asked as she leaned forward, this could be the make or break and she wanted to know what exactly was needed.

"To break into her house." Spencer held up her hands to stop any interruptions. "Alison hides a lot of things, and I'm willing to bet that there is something in her house."

Spencer went on to explain how the Ice Ball would be the perfect place. They could keep an eye on Alison, who would have to make an appearance there, seeing as her family was sponsoring the event, while Spencer and whomever broke into her house to search it. However in order for them to do that, Paige and Caleb would have to come clean to the girls about what they've been doing, which in turn might make them A's next targets.

In short they had a few days to think about how they wanted to approach the situation and to convince the girls to go to the Ice Ball.

Paige left the two in the kitchen, and headed up to her room, she needed to take some things back to Emily, and she wasn't sure what. She ended up taking some extra running gear, Emily knew how much she liked to run in the mornings.

When she got back down, Caleb and Spencer were waiting near the front door. "Ready?" Caleb asked, pulling the front door open.

Paige nodded, and once they were outside, she locked up the house. She was quiet on the way back, not even taking notice of when they stopped for ice cream. It was only once they stopped outside of Emily's house and Caleb killed the engine that she looked up.

"I think I have a plan. It'll take a bit of guilt tripping but we can still avoid telling the girls about what we've been doing." Paige glanced up at Caleb, waiting for his nod before she continued, "Just agree with me when I bring it up okay?"

Caleb frowned but agreed and they finally got out of the car. They found the girls standing in the kitchen, bowls for the ice cream already out.

"Did you guys leave town to get this? It took forever!" Hanna complained, causing Caleb to walk over and take her in his arms, kissing her temple in apology.

"Sorry it was my fault." Paige spoke up, "I couldn't find some of the stuff I was looking for."

Emily and Paige dished out the ice cream, and then followed Caleb and Hanna out onto the porch. They took the porch swing, while Hanna and Caleb took the single porch chair, the former sitting on the latter's lap. Easy conversation flowed and they found themselves discussing the movie, just like in the movie, Paige lost interest very quickly, instead waiting for the chance to bring up the ball. She didn't have to wait long before Hanna brought up college, and hoping that they would be able to get together often once they scattered to all sides of the continent.

Paige took the opportunity Hanna gave her, and immediately jumped into the conversation. "It would be great to get together, and I was thinking." She paused for dramatic effect. "I don't know if Em told you guys," Paige looked over at Emily, lacing their fingers together, "But I might not be around to take her to prom. I know she was looking forward to it."

Emily squeezed her hand, as Hanna made a sad sound.

"I know you guys have decided against going to the Ice Ball, but I'd love to take her to it. Not for anything but the chance to have the experience." Paige dipped her head, feeling her face heat up at the partial lie, as well as the eyes on her face.

"I think that's a great idea Paige," Caleb smiled at her.

"I agree." Hanna added, "Let's go, dance our asses off and have a good time. Screw Alison."

"Em?" Paige called her name when she hadn't said anything.

"I'm waiting for you to ask me." Emily teased, causing their friends and Paige to laugh.

"Well in that case." Paige shifted to take both Emily's hands in hers, she met Emily's eyes, a teasing smile on her face. "Emily Fields? It would give me great pleasure to escort you to the Ice Ball. If you'll have me."

"Of course you adorable dork." Emily laughed shaking her head.

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><p>Hanna and Caleb left late that evening, and both girls were ready to head to bed. After saying goodnight to Emily's mom they headed upstairs, with them stopping in front of Emily's door.<p>

"Coming running with me tomorrow morning?"

"I'll think about it." Emily pretended to think, her index finger tapping her chin.

Paige shook her head with a laugh and pulled Emily towards her, fusing their lips together in a goodnight kiss. Paige attempted to separate them, fully aware that Mrs. Fields could walk up at any moment, but Emily had other plans, she teased Paige's lips open and deepened the kiss as she slid her hands under her shirt to drag her nails down her girlfriend's back. Emily's hands slipped down to Paige's ass and she squeezed hard, bringing their hips together.

Paige was just getting into it, all thoughts of where they were disappeared from her mind, when Emily pulled away and took two steps backwards into her room.

"Had to make sure you dream of me." Emily teased her dazed girlfriend. "Goodnight." She closed the door leaving Paige in the hallway.

Paige swore under her breath and with a soft laugh headed into the guest room. She heard Mrs. Fields make her way down the hall and into her bedroom minutes later. Paige got ready for bed, her mind still awash with thoughts of the kiss. She got into bed, and soon after heard her door open softly. Emily snuck in quickly, locking the door behind her. She slipped into the bed, curling up against Paige.

"I was wondering when I'd see you." Paige whispered, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend and pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"It's hard knowing you just across the hall. Especially when our time is so limited."

Paige's arms tightened around her. "Doesn't mean we'll be over Em. There's still holidays, weekends."

"Doesn't mean it won't be hard."

"I know. But I'll never give up on you Emily Fields. I love you too much."

Emily smiled, kissing the hollow behind Paige's ear. "I love you too."

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><p>The whole group, sans a broken legged Toby, were thoroughly enjoying themselves. From the pictures at each of the girls houses, to finally entering the winter wonderland that had sprung up in a matter of days. They'd all taken a turn on the dancefloor, even switching partners at times. Right now all of the couples were dancing to a slow song, while Spencer kept an eye out for Alison.<p>

When she finally made an entrance, flanked by her new group everything but the music came to a halt as everyone stared up at her. As soon as the trance was broken everyone began moving. Hanna, after being warned to be careful by Caleb, and Spencer left. The girls and their partners split up to try and cover as much ground as possible.

Aria's discovery of Alison and Holbrook's kiss had them all distracted for a second as they wondered what that could mean, it was enough time for Alison to slip into the maze without any of them noticing. They spotted her as soon as she left with someone dressed in a white hood. Immediately Caleb and Ezra left to distract Holbrook who had spotted Alison exiting the maze, while Emily and Aria followed the blonde and her friend. Paige and Lucas, who Spencer had managed to recruit, went around intending to cut them off.

When they realized their mistake at having found Cindy and Mindy under Alison masks, they tried to get hold of Spencer and Hanna to warn them, however the grave look that came over Caleb's face when he finally got through to them had them racing to their cars.

Hanna had been attacked by A in Alison's house. When they entered Spencer's house they were met with the sight of Hanna holding an ice pack to her head. Spencer gave them a short version of what happened and triumphantly held up the letter that connected Alison to Bethany, the letter gave them an explanation to what Bethany had been doing in Rosewood that day.

A news bulletin came up and Toby turned up the sound. All eyes turned to the tv as the news anchor reported roads being closed due to the storm, and the mood in the room shifted as they realized that for most of them, this would be their first Christmas without their families.

After the calls were made, they began rummaging around for things to make dinner. With some Christmas carols playing in the background, everyone got into the spirit of Christmas.

Their preparations stopped when Hanna who had stepped out of the noisy kitchen to answer her phone returned, her eyes wide.

"Han? Everything okay?" Spencer, the first one to notice asked.

"Mona's awake."

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><p>AN: Thanks for reading, don't be shy to tell me what you think.<p> 


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I own nothing, All mistakes are my own.

AN: Thank you to all who have read, reviewed, followed and favorited. A huge huge thank you to **nick2951** who wrote the amazingly sweet Mona/Mike scene. Hope you enjoy.

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><p>The first thing she became aware of was how dry her mouth was. Her eyelids felt so heavy, that when she opened them up all she could see was blurry outlines. There was soft pressure on her right hand, and she could hear murmuring nearby. After a short struggle she managed to keep her eyes open, and the room came into focus. She turned her head slightly and realized that the murmuring was coming from her mother speaking to a nurse.<p>

"M-Mom." She croaked, causing the conversation to come to a halt as they turned to face her.

"Mona!" Her mother cried, "Oh thank God."

The nurse left to get the doctor, the commotion drawing the attention of the officer stationed at the door, who immediately called his superiors.

"W-what happened?"

Her mother paused to give her a sip of water, for which she was very grateful for, wondering for just a moment if she should tell her or wait. Deciding that Detective Tanner was probably on the way already, she decided to tell her. "You were attacked honey."

As if her words were a trigger Mona began remembering parts of that day. The pain of the knife slashing away at her body, how hard it was to breathe after she hurtled down the stairs.

Her doctor entered the room breaking her away from memories.

"Miss Vanderwaal, it's great to see you awake. I'm just going to do some tests."

The doctor checked her vitals and asked her a few questions, all the while having the nurse write down her responses. When he was satisfied he left her to rest, crossing paths as he left, with Tanner who walked in with a grave look on her face.

"Miss Vanderwaal. Welcome back." Tanner moved closer to the bed, motioning for the officer she brought with to come closer as well. "If this could wait I would, however if we are to catch the person who did this to you we need any information you could give us. Let's start with what you remember from that day."

"Of course." Mona adjusted the bed so she could sit up a little more. "My mom had just left, I was to be joining her later in the day. I phoned Aria Montgomery about the school project we had been working on, as well as Caleb Rivers to ask them to come to my house with the rest of the girls. The next thing I remember was someone coming into my room. I remember feeling terrified. Feeling the blade in my side, my chest." Mona shuddered, and the tears in Mrs. Vanderwaal's eyes escaped, leaving wet trails down her cheeks. "I remember being thrown down the stairs, calling for help, pleading for my life."

"Could you tell us anything to help identify your attacker?" The grim expression on Tanner's face had deepened.

Mona shook her head trying to remember. "Blonde hair. Definitely female."

"Could you think of anyone who would want to hurt you?"

"Only one, Alison DiLaurentis."

"Thank you." Tanner began making her way out if the room, when a thought came to her. "Miss Vanderwaal, what would Paige McCullers be doing at your house?"

Mrs. Vanderwaal bristled, ready to defend the girl who had stopped the attack on her daughter. Mona, sensing her mother's anger placed a calming hand on hers.

"I asked Caleb to call her while I called Aria."

"I see." Tanner nodded, "I wish you a speedy recovery." she left and Mike barreled inside, his eyes wide as he stared at his conscious girlfriend.

"I need to talk to the detective real quick." Mrs. Vanderwaal stood, looking between the two with a small smile.

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><p>Mona smiled at her boyfriend as her mother left the room and she struggled to raise her body up to more of a sitting position. However the pain was still too much for her body and she fell back into her previous position. Mike moved to help her, the worried look on his face was all too evident; especially the tears in his eyes that were tears of joy.<p>

"Hi," she said weakly and softly; her throat was still hoarse and dry from the previous conversation with Tanner as well as being asleep for a month.

"You have no clue how worried I was," Mike said as he sat down next to her and clasped her hand in his. From the sound of his voice, Mona believed him.

"I'm sorry I worried you," she said and guilt started to flood her on worrying so many of her loved ones.

"I'm just happy that you are alive," Mike said as he squeezed his girlfriend's hand.

"So am I," she replied as she tried to squeeze back but found it too had to do. Despite all the drugs she was on, her body still hurt from the trauma it had endured.

"You were so messed up when they brought you in that I was scared that you wouldn't make it," Mike admitted and terror of that day still resonated in his mind. There had been so much blood and the wires that were hooked into her body still brought shivers to his body.

"Do I look bad? There are no mirrors in here and I can't go to the bathroom to look at myself," Mona stated and was curious about her state. It felt like it had been forever since she last showered and felt sticky.

She was presently in a checkered hospital gown and wrapped up with white blankets covering her. She was hooked up to an IV machine which was routinely pumping fluids and drugs into her system. Her hair was looking a little stringy and the smell of the hospital emanated from her skin. While the scars on her face were barely visible, it was the ones underneath the gown that would take time to heal.

"You look beautiful," Mike simply said as he smiled at her and Mona blushed, her vitals rising with a loud beeping. If they were to rise even more, a flood of doctors and nurses might rush into the room; disturbing the enduring scene between the couple.

"How did you get here? I heard the roads were all closed because of the weather and we are miles away from your house," Mona inquired as the snow continued to fall outside.

"I biked here after your mother called; mom and dad are angry with me after calling them to let them know that I made it because I never asked for their permission," he admitted and Mona snorted though it hurt to laugh.

It definitely looked like Mike had come straight here since he was beat red and slightly huffing from all the bike riding. His clothes looked wet and sweat was on his face; making her hope that he had worn a jacket since there was a risk of him getting sick. He wasn't shivering though, and she was glad that the room was so warm because of the cold outside. He was rather handsomely dressed with a pair of blue slacks and matching shirt; Mona concluding that he had been in the middle of dinner when he got the call.

She was right since he had received the call as the family had just sat down to eat. It had just been the three of them since Aria was with her friends and Ezra; which had annoyed Bryan a tad though Ella had seemed fine with it. After getting the news, he had rushed upstairs, threw on some better shoes and a jacket, and grabbed the bike to get to the hospital since driving there was out of the question. Biking through the snow had been tough, but he had persevered and made it with no problems.

"You shouldn't have done that; I don't want you hurt because of me," Mona chided though she was happy that he had come; feeling the warmth in her heart.

"I care about you Mona, and I want to be here; besides, Aria is spending the night with Ezra so it's not like being with my girlfriend in the hospital is worse," he countered and she found his protectiveness of her sister endearing.

"Well thank you for being here; I just feel so sore and tired," Mona stated and Mike nodded as he understood.

"I brought you something," Mike said and he pulled a little wrapped box out of his pocket and handed it to her. Though it was hard to grasp it with the tubes coming out of her various appendages, she still managed to hold it in her hand. It was wrapped in purple wrapping with a red bow wrapped around it.

She unwrapped the present, which was a little difficult to do and had to have Mike help unwrap it. It was a box which held a gold chain with a heart-shaped pendant. Tears were brought to Mona's eyes at the sight of the piece of jewelry and she looked up at her boyfriend with happiness. Mike just smiled back at her as he watched as Mona handled the gift; he had planned to give that to her for a while as an early present.

"Merry Christmas," Mike said as he leaned forward to give Mona a kiss on the cheek. She was crying now with a heart full of joy; she hadn't realized that it was Christmas morning.

"I didn't get you anything though," Mona said with guilt in her voice. Mike just shook his head though and smiled.

"You waking up is my Christmas Present; welcome back," he said and Mona just beamed as tears continued to fall from her face. She truly felt like a Christmas miracle.

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><p>They stared at Hanna, and she repeated her sentence. "Mona's awake. Mrs. V just called, Tanner's been there already."<p>

Spencer was the first one to kick into high gear. "Do you think the roads are too bad to drive on?" She asked Toby who had been keeping an eye on the news while everyone had been busy in the kitchen.

Toby nodded, "It's pretty bad out there. Black ice."

The girls and Ezra moved closer to Toby, hoping to find a solution that would help them get to the hospital and hopefully closer to finding out who A was from Mona. Caleb and Paige, after a shared look kept their distance, staying in the kitchen.

"Do you think she said anything to Tanner?" Caleb asked, keeping his eyes on the group.

"No, I don't think Mona would throw us under the bus even if she had some plan up her sleeve." Paige murmured back. "We need to get to the hospital. The sooner we have any information Mona has, the sooner we can figure this mess out."

Caleb nodded in agreement. "Toby said something about them clearing the roads. It looks like we're stuck here until the morning."

They followed the discussion in the other room and eventually even Spencer gave up agreeing that they would have to wait until the morning. The atmosphere had changed dramatically and gone was the Christmas cheer. Replaced instead with thoughtful silence as everyone reflected on what they knew, trying to figure out a puzzle with many pieces missing.

Paige chewed on her lip, her fork making distracted circles in her food. Something about the attack had been bugging her since she woke up. Like she was missing some crucial piece of evidence. Tanner has questioned her as well before she left the hospital and she had answered as best as she could down to trying to get the upper hand on Mona's attacker. But that's when she had assumed that A had gotten the upper hand and smashed her head in, because the next thing she could remember was waking up in the hospital room. She glanced up from her plate when Emily nudged her hand.

"You okay?"

Paige nodded, forcing a small, yet convincing smile. "I'm okay." She laced their fingers together pressing a kiss to the back of Emily's hand.

After dinner and clean up, they set up a place to sleep, after Toby had been helped up, Spencer, Aria and Ezra headed up as well. Leaving the rest in the living room, which had been converted into sleeping space.

When they woke the next morning, they were glad to see that the snow had stopped. After breakfast they piled into two cars, Aria needed to get home and Caleb, Hanna, Emily and Paige were heading to the hospital. Spencer, although she wanted to go with, opted to stay with Toby. The drive to the hospital was quiet and slow. A lot of the roads had been cleared, but they still ended up taking a longer route since a few were still closed. When they finally pulled into the hospital parking lot it hit them. They may just be about to find out who A was.

Each couple walked hand in hand through the hospital halls, both liars hoping that this would be the day they find their freedom. They were brought to a halt near Mona's door, outside stood Mike as well as three uniformed police officers.

"Mike? What's going on?" Hanna asked, separating from Caleb to stand closer.

"Mona had some kind of attack last night, she remembered more of the attack." He walked closer to her as he spoke. "Turns out after she came out of Radley she was afraid of someone, and set up a few cameras around her house. Tanner is reviewing the tapes at the station, and these guys," he jerked a finger over his shoulder at the police officers, "Aren't allowing anyone in."

The group moved closer to Mike. "Any word on what was on the videos?" Caleb asked, wondering of the laptop Mona had left in his possession was linked to the cameras.

"None. All I know is she told Tanner about the cameras and Tanner rushed off, soon after the uniforms showed up and wouldn't let me back into the room."

From the look of concentration on Caleb's face, Paige could tell that something was up.

After thanking Mike and saying goodbye to him they walked away, stopping once they were out of sight.

"I have a plan." Caleb dropped his voice, and after explaining it Paige found herself walking back to Mona's room alone, a huge bouquet of flowers in her hand. Mrs. Vanderwaal ushered her into the room, and she placed the flowers on the table near Mona's bed.

"Hi Mona. It's great to see you awake." Paige felt awkward with Mrs. Vanderwaal staring at her expectantly.

"Mom?" Mona called after noticing the discomfort and urgency in Paig's expression, "Could you give us a few minutes please?"

"Of course, I'll be just outside."

After Mona's mother left, Paige took her seat close to the bed.

"I'm guessing Mike told you about the videos Tanner has?"

Paige nodded, "He did."

"Does Caleb still have my laptop?" Mona waited for confirmation before continuing. "Great, Alison's about to get what's coming to her. This is what you need to do."

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><p>AN: Thanks again for reading, I'm hoping to have the next chapter up sooner than usual. Fingers crossed. Let me know what you think.<p> 


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I own nothing, all mistakes are my own.

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><p>Mona explained her plan, and Paige found herself getting ready to leave as a doctor came into the room.<p>

"Hey Mona?" She called from the door, "We're all really happy that you're okay. We were all worried, Hanna was here everyday. She's here now, if you could organise it with the guard, I know she'd love to see you."

There was silence as they held their eye contact and then, Mona nodded.

"I'll send her up." Paige smiled, raising her hand slightly to wave bye before she left.

She rushed back to the car, where Caleb had the laptop ready to go. Paige stopped him before he could ask what Mona had said, focusing on Hanna. "She wants to see you."

"Don't start without us." Hanna warned before they left.

They watched them leave and Paige began relaying the information Mona had given her. The password to unlock the folders that housed the video. He made short work of it and when he got into the folder he hesitated, glancing at Paige to see if they should watch it or not. After a short debate which basically revolved around how angry the girls would be, they decided to wait.

Eventually they returned, and Caleb drove them back to a waiting Spencer's house. After a quick recap of what had happened at the hospital, Caleb dragged the video up, and they all gathered around to watch what happened that day.

Caleb fast forwarded through the first few hours, watching the screen closely as the time on the side got closer to the time of the attack. They watched Mona and her mother walked out of the house and Caleb set the video to normal speed. A few minutes passed before Mona walked back into the house, disappearing off to the left of the screen, which everyone knew was where the stairs was. The door opened again, and the room was silent as Alison stepped into Mona's house. She glanced towards the lounge area and her lips moved as if she was calling out. Her eyes flirted past the camera's hiding spot, pausing as if she noticed something. Paige took a moment to really look, noticing desperation in her usually ice cold blue eyes. Alison shook her head as if she was imagining things and disappeared up the stairs. It didn't take her long to reappear, with a frazzled looking Mona following her. Alison said something and Mona shook her head, before shouting something at her, the desperation in Alison's eyes turned to anger, and after Alison left, Mona locked the door, falling back against it.

Caleb paused the tape and glanced around, "Why do you think Alison went to Mona?"

"To try and threaten her about the information Mona had." Spencer stated, leaving no room for argument.

"That's not really A's MO though." Toby ventured into the conversation. "A goes straight for what she wants, and wouldn't leave without it."

"That's why she went back. To make sure Mona never let the world see her for who she is." Emily's eyes were glued to the screen. Paige, seeing the hurt in her eyes at being fooled by someone she loved, laced their fingers together, giving Emily's hand a loving squeeze.

Hanna leaned over Caleb and pressed play again.

They watched Mona take out her phone and dial a number, bringing the phone to her ear as she glanced through the peephole of the door. Once she was certain that Alison was gone she disappeared up the stairs, and they were left staring at the locked door.

They let the video play, worried that if they sped it up they would miss something.

Spencer however couldn't wait and after ten minutes she leaned forward to fast forward it when the door knob turned and the door inched open. In walked A, ducking her head as if she knew there was a camera, blonde hair flowing freely from the opening of her hoodie. A shut the door gently and the group gasped in unison at the glint of the silver blade in A's gloved hand.

Slowly A glanced around the house before heading in the same direction Mona had gone. They stared anxiously at the screen, the tension in the room raising higher and higher with each second, until Mona was flung down the stairs and her rumpled bloody figure rolled infront of the camera. A kicked at her body and Paige winced as she watched the attack, closing her eyes when the knife came down. She felt Emily's grip on her hand tighten, and she opened her eyes in time to see herself on screen, pausing for a moment before barreling into the house and off screen. A few minutes passed before Caleb appeared opening the door and glancing into the house, the color in his face drained and the last they saw of him was him pulling his phone out and rushing into the lounge.

The room was silent as they contemplated what they had just seen. Again the feeling that she was missing something important struck Paige, and as hard as it was to relive that day she went over the sequence of events in her mind. She shook her head when she came up blank, so involved in trying to figure out what she was missing that she missed half of the conversation happening around her.

"It was enough time for her to get the mask and the hoodie." Spencer argued against the time between Alison leaving and A coming back. "It looked like Alison knew where the camera was, she stared right at it! And all of a sudden when A comes back in she avoids looking at the camera. That's too big of a coincidence!"

"Do you really think Alison would have been able to over power Paige that easily?" Caleb asked, gesturing in Paige's direction. "She's a top athlete for God's sake!"

Hearing her name jerked her out of her thoughts and Paige focused on the conversation happening around her.

"Actually I was about to take A's mask off when I got hit in the head." Paige shrugged.

"See!" Spencer gestured towards Paige, "Distraction allowed Alison to over power her. We know it's her, and once she's arrested for trying to kill Mona, no more A. We can live our lives without watching our backs."

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><p>It didn't take long for them to find out that Alison's alibi was Jason, Spencer and Emily teamed up to try and find any inconsistencies in their stories and weren't disappointed with what they found. Spencer was as honest as she could be with him, pleading to him about how she was being prosecuted for something she didn't do. When they left the Dilaurentis house, they weren't sure what Jason would do.<p>

The version of the video the police got only showed from when Mona was shoved down the stairs, the memory on the camera itself wasn't big enough to hold the entire video. Days passed with no word on any arrests in Mona's case, and the girls were getting angsty, waiting for the police to put the pieces together.

Mona was released after a week of being awake, with police posted outside her house. Paige and Caleb had gone to visit her, hoping that she would be able to help them get into the Rosewood Police Department database, since Toby was out of commission until his leg healed. Mona had looked much better, and they had sat in her room as her fingers moved rapidly over the keyboard, unlocking parts of the computer they hadn't had access to yet.

Once they had access to the database, they kept a close eye on the files that were changed, their hard work finally paid off when a new document appeared. A warrant of Arrest for Alison.

The girls all breathed a sigh of relief when they heard the news, and they relaxed even more when she was arrested an hour later.

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><p>Paige and Caleb were sitting at the table in the Marin household while the girls discussed an A free future. After making sure they were properly occupied, Paige leaned towards Caleb.<p>

"Can we talk?" She asked jerking her head to the door. With a nod from him, they both stood up and left the kitchen.

"What's up?"

"Something doesn't feel right." Paige ran her hand over her face. "Like I'm missing something important, and I keep trying to think back to the day at Mona's house, but I keep drawing a blank."

"Maybe you're worried that we made a mistake?"

"Maybe. But something about that day...It just feels like when I'm about to figure it out, it slips right through my fingers." Paige sighed, "Maybe I'm just reading too much into it."

"I think for now, it would be best to let the police do their work, see if they pick up anything we hadn't."

Before their conversation could continue Emily opened the door, poking her head out. "There you guys are! Caleb, Hanna needed something."

"Of course." He squeezed Paige's shoulder, and then headed inside.

"Everything okay?" Emily asked as she stepped outside.

"Yeah, just California." Paige sat down onto one of the chairs and Emily walked over to her, sat in her lap and looped her arms around her neck. Paige wrapped her arms around Emily pulling her closer, needing her in that moment to just be as close as possible.

"We'll figure it out." There was silence for a minute before Emily spoke again. "California has earthquakes."

Paige laughed softly, reveling in the feeling of Emily being so close to her, the way she smelt, how perfectly they fit against each other. "Yeah, I don't think they'll go for that."

Emily brushed a few strands of hair off of Paige's face, running her fingers across her cheek, to her lips. Her hand moved to her chin, tilting her head up to capture her lips in a slow, sensual kiss. They had a relationship that was filled with ups and downs, the timing never fit, but even with all of that Emily loved Paige with all of her heart. She was the first person Emily had dreamt if a future with. The first girlfriend she opened up to. After all they fought against to be together, there was no way she was going to let them end because of distance. Paige pulled away, and her eyes were dark, her pupils making up most of her eyes. Her lips moved down jaw to her neck.

"Come home with me tonight." Paige murmured against the side of Emily's neck, pressing a kiss to her pulse point.

"Where are your parents?" Emily whispered breathlessly as Paige's hand slipped under her shirt, dragging her fingers lightly over her stomach.

"They'll be back tomorrow." Paige murmured, her breath causing Emily to shudder. "Come home with me."

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><p>Emily was both excited and nervous about going home with Paige, it has been a long time since they had spent <em>alone<em> time. The last had been before the letter incident and she _missed _Paige so much. She had zoned out so many times since coming back in that Hanna began smirking at her, noticing the looks Emily and Paige kept sharing. The way they always seemed to be touching. She hadn't missed the sight of their swollen lips once they had come back in, or the blush that showed on their faces. Her smirk grew when Emily asked her to cover for her and say she was staying over.

They were quiet when they finally reached Paige's house. The entire drive over had her almost vibrating in her seat. The house was dark and Paige led them through the darkness, holding onto Emily's hand to make sure she didn't walk into anything. She flipped a light switch and the kitchen light came on.

"Something to drink?" Paige asked as she let go of Emily's hand and walked over to the fridge. At Emily's request she returned with two bottles of water.

Paige's mouth was dry, she was nervous, she set the almost full bottle on the counter and took a deep breath.

Emily placed a gentle hand on her girlfriend's forearm, "Paige we don't have to-" but was cut off from completing her sentence when Paige turned around and covered her lips with her own. Emily, after a second, closed her eyes and melted into the soft yet confident kiss. Without breaking the kiss Paige turned them around, pressing Emily into the counter as she teased her lips open. Everything about Emily, the way she tasted, the way she felt, the smell of her perfume mixed with something Paige had identified as just Emily, felt like home. Emily's hands tangled in Paige's hair as their tongues met, and Paige's hands ran down Emily's sides to her hips, where she squeezed hard enough to cause Emily to gasp.

Paige pulled away, just enough to pull Emily's shirt over her head, before pressing open mouthed kisses from her neck down to her collar bone, down to the swell of her heaving breasts.

Her hands moved to the button of Emily's jeans, popping it out easily before sliding her zip down and pushing the jeans down as far as she could without breaking the contact with Emily's heated skin.

She pulled away for a moment, allowing Emily to kick her jeans and sneakers off completely. "Beautiful." She murmured at the sight of the matching blue lace that was all that stood in the way of her goal. Paige reconnected their lips, in a kiss that stole Emily's breath, her hands moved to the back of Emily's thighs and in one swift motion, that only caused a slight discomfort in her shoulder, Paige lifted her up onto the counter.

She deftly unclipped the blue bra, dropping it onto the pile of clothes, and set to work lavishing Emily's breasts with her mouth. Using her lips, tongue and teeth to draw the most amazing sounds from her. When her girlfriend whimpered her name, pleading with her to stop teasing, she pressed against her sternum, causing Emily to lay back on the counter. She didn't wait long to give Emily what she wanted, quickly stripping her of the last piece.

Later, as Emily slept, soothed by the sound of Paige's strong heartbeat under her ear, her girlfriend was still awake. As she ran her fingers through Emily's silky hair, every part of her that had wondered what life would be like without the drama that Rosewood carried was silent. She had loved Emily, basically from the moment she had first met her. Before she even knew what it meant. They struggled to get where they were, and it had been some of the hardest times Paige had faced. The thought of leaving brought a sting to her eyes and a lump to her throat. She had to find a way to get out of graduating early, but most importantly she had to be completely honest as to why she had been at Mona's house that day. Emily deserved that much after including Paige in so much more than before. She'd tell her tomorrow, for right now, she was content to hold her girlfriend through what was left of the night.

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><p>AN: Thank you for all of the reviews, favorites and follows. Let me know what you think of this one.<p> 


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I own nothing, all mistakes are my own.

AN: Thank you for the reviews, favorites and follows. Its late, and shorter than normal, I apologize, its been a hellish week. A special thank you to **nick2951 **for the encouragement. Don't forget to give his fic's a look especially if you are a Mona fan.

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><p>Paige woke to the feel of Emily nuzzling into her neck, her girlfriends fingers tracing absent-minded patterns on the skin near her belly button. She turned her head towards Emily, and was met with a shy smile.<p>

"Morning." Paige whispered, her voice was huskier than normal.

Emily pressed a soft kiss to her neck and then leaned up to cover her girlfriends lips with her own. "I've missed this."

"Naked cuddles?" Paige smiled, before kissing her again.

"Mmhm. But also being with you, in every way." Emily moved back, resting her elbow on the bed, and her head in her hand. "I'm just glad we have us another chance. That we're being honest with each other."

Paige felt guilt clench around her heart, and she shifted until she was sitting up against the headboard, pulling the sheets up to cover her torso. "I actually want to talk to you about something."

"I don't want to know." Emily stated, sitting up and shaking her head. "If it's about A, and going to pop this bubble we're in, I don't want to know. Not right now anyway." Emily shifted so that she was straddling Paige under the sheets, "For right now all I want to do is pretend," Emily kissed her hard, leaving no doubt as to what she had in mind, "That it's just me and you, that the outside world doesn't exist. Can we do that? Just for a little while?"

Paige nodded, sealing their deal by bringing their lips together again, her hands already moving to explore Emily's body.

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><p>A little while turned into days of not popping the bubble, with no A around the girls finally had the chance to be normal. No more days spent worrying about what A might have in store for them, no more looking over their shoulder every few minutes. However the heart wrenching moments that came after the sound of a received text would take a while to get over. For the first time in years they felt like they could breathe. Alison's trial wouldn't start until after the New Year, and they avoided bringing up the subject, distancing themselves from the speculation of the town, and concentrating on their futures.<p>

They were currently at the Fields residence, since Wayne was leaving on the second, Pam had invited the girls and their families, as well as their partners, over for a small get together for New Year's Eve. After an amazing dinner, where conversation and jokes flowed freely, the teens offered to clear the table, while the adults moved to the next room. Paige was thinking of a way to get her parents to reconsider the whole California move, so far she figured she could either get them to agree to let her finish her school year, and graduate with her class, or she'd have to go to an extreme. She really hopped it was the latter. She had spoken to both Caleb and Hanna, knowing they could both help her out in case things didn't go her way. Although skeptical, Caleb had agreed to hack into the school's system and change enough to not make her eligible for early graduation, and Hanna had agreed to talk to her mom about Paige staying with them if things came to worse with her parents.

Even though it had been stressful, after getting some semblance of a plan together, she allowed herself to forget about it and enjoy spending time with the group.

The adults had taken over the living room, and from her spot on the balcony, Paige could hear laughter coming from there. She had left the group, downstairs in the den and had come up to the bathroom, stopping for a few minutes on the balcony hoping the cold air would help to clear her head.

She'd been having nightmares, more frequently since Alison had been arrested, each one featured the day Mona had been attacked. Each night Paige re-lived the fight with A, and every time she woke up covered in cold sweat, breathing hard, with her heart trying to break from her chest. Every time it happened, she'd spend the rest of the time trying to figure out what the nagging feeling meant, what her subconscious was trying to tell her.

She rested her elbows on the balcony railing, glancing up at the stars as she went through it again.

_She changed directions after Caleb's call, heading into the opposite side of Rosewood. She reached Mona's house first and when she opened the door of her car and got out she heard the first scream._

_She darted up the path and took the porch steps two at a time. She burst through the door, her eyes immediately finding a bloody Mona on the floor, a black hoodie standing over her, knife in hand. She charged, the few seconds of surprise giving her an advantage. She shoulder tackled the hoodie, feeling something in her shoulder move as they landed hard on the floor, the knife clattering to the floor. _

_They rolled over, each trying to pin the other-_

"There you are."

Emily's voice jerked her from her memories, and she started, her hand flying to her heart as she turned around.

"You scared me." Paige breathed a laugh, as her face colored.

Emily moved closer, mirroring Paige's previous position. "Sorry, I called you but you were in there pretty deep. What were you thinking about?"

Paige retook her position, moving slightly so that their arms were pressed together. "I was thinking about the day of the attack." This was it, time to be honest, no more secrets no more lies.

Emily's brow furrowed and she turned to face her girlfriend, "What about it?"

Paige rubbed her temples and closed her eyes. "I just feel like there's something I'm missing. I keep dreaming about that day."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"Because you had enough to worry about without my nightmares and weird feelings." Paige stood up straight, wanting to look Emily in the eye as she confessed everything.

"I.." She started before the voices in the living room began counting, causing Emily to stand up and take a step towards her.

10

9

8

7

6

Paige sighed, knowing that the longer she put it off, the angrier Emily would be, but for now she wanted to bring the New Year in with her gorgeous girlfriend. She pulled Emily closer, wrapping her arms around her waist, as Emily's arms circled her neck. For this moment, everything could wait just a few minutes more.

5

4

3

2

1

"Happy New Year Em." She whispered as she kissed her. Emily's arms tightened around her, as they lost themselves in each other. The fireworks in the background, could not distract them from the fireworks they were making. When they finally pulled away Emily leaned her forehead against Paige's.

"Happy New Year. I love you."

"I love you too." Paige smiled, leaning in for another kiss when a pointed cough from the balcony doors caught their attention.

Blushing hard, Paige jerked away from Emily putting a meter of space between them, as Emily's dad walked onto the balcony, a stern look on his face. Paige swallowed hard, her heart racing in her chest. "Happy New Year Mr. Fields."

Wayne's eyebrow raised, and Paige found herself wondering if she'd survive jumping off the balcony.

His scowl shook and he began laughing a full bellied laugh.

"Dad!" Emily scolded with a smile on her face. "I told you not to do that!"

"I'm sorry, I had too," Wayne sent an apologetic smile Paige's way. "Come on your mom wants to make a toast." Still chuckling he led the way downstairs.

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><p>When the festivities died down, Paige was slipping on her coat, when Wayne walked over.<p>

"Why don't you stay the night? It's pretty late, drunk drivers." He smiled at her. He actually liked Paige. She didn't seem to have any hidden agendas, Pam liked her and he hadn't seen his Emmy smile the way she did with Paige before.

"Uhm are you sure Mr. Fields?" She stammered, her fingers frozen on the buttons of her coat.

"Of course, just no funny business." He warned sternly, before breaking into a grin, "And Paige? Please call me Wayne."

Paige nodded, "Thank you Mr... Wayne." she corrected herself, "I'll let my parents know."

Wayne smiled and left her to it, she phoned her parents and after letting them know, stripped off her coat and hung it back up. Emily had gone outside to say goodbye to everyone while Paige helped Pam clean up, and just as she was about to head out to tell her girlfriend about the change of plans, Emily walked back in.

"Uhm your dad invited me to stay the night." Paige still wasn't sure what to think of Wayne, one minute he seemed like he was about a second away from shooting her for even thinking about looking at his daughter, and the next he was inviting her to sleep over. "I'm still not sure if he likes me or not."

Emily laughed, "He likes you, or else you wouldn't be about to sleep in my bed. If he didn't you'd know." She reached over and took one of Paige's hands in her own. "Come on." The way Emily's eyes twinkled mischievously caused Paige to put on the breaks.

"No, no way." Paige shook her head, "I promised your dad that we wouldn't do anything, and that look? That look says you want to do something that will have me outside in the cold with half my clothes on."

"No funny business, scouts honor." Emily laughed and held up on hand, trying to school her face into the perfect picture of innocence.

Paige raised an eyebrow, "I'm watching you Fields."

She finally allowed an amused Emily to pull her up the stairs and into her room. They changed quickly and got into bed, both exhausted from the long night.

Emily grabbed Paige's arm as she turned onto her side, so that Paige was spooning her. With Paige wrapped around her, their fingers laced together and pressed against her heart, Emily never felt safer. Emily tried to get Paige to tell her what she wanted to on the balcony, but after the yawn that interrupted her words, Paige shook her head and promised Emily they would talk about it properly in the morning. With a whispered goodnight and a kiss to Emily's cheek they fell asleep.

And then it started, one minute Paige was reveling in the feeling of Emily pressed up against her, the feeling of her heartbeat under her hand. The next she was in Mona's door way, A was standing over Mona, the bloody knife in her hand. Paige froze for just a second before launching herself forwards. The struggle was a blur and soon enough A was pinned underneath her, the Alison mask so temptingly close, A's eyes narrowed at her.

She sat up in bed, her heart racing. She could feel the sweat running down her face and she trembled trying to catch her breath, she finally knew what had been bothering her about that night. One small detail that could change everything.

"Paige?" Emily asked groggily, rubbing her eyes as she sat up, she switched on her bedside lamp, the shadows the light cast throwing the worry on her face into deep lines.

"Their green, not blue. It's not her. Alison. It wasn't her." Paige managed to choke out, as soon as she said it her phone beeped signaling a text.

_Welcome to the game. –A._

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><p><em>AN: <em>Let me know what you think, thank you for reading.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I own nothing, All mistakes are my own.

AN: Thank you for all the support you guys have given this story I really appreciate it.

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><p>Once they saw the text Emily alerted the girls, while Paige sent Caleb a message telling him about the text, also to give him a heads up that it was time to be honest with their girlfriend's.<p>

Though it was the middle of the night and they were all exhausted they agreed to meet in Spencer's barn, hoping that because of the late hour they wouldn't be overheard.

Emily was tense as they drove, she hadn't wanted this. Paige wasn't supposed to get mixed up this much in A's drama. She was supposed to get out of Rosewood and live without watching her back. She was angry! A already took this game too far, a car through her living room, her shoulder and her chances at Stanford, and now.. she was going after Paige. Paige who just happened to be in the wrong place at the right time. She parked on the side of the street. Not wanting to wake Spencer's parents up, and killed the engine.

"Em?" Paige had opened the door, ready to get out when she noticed that Emily had yet to move, she closed the door again, trying to prevent too much of the cold getting in, and took her hand trying to break her from her thoughts. "You okay?"

"No!" Emily slammed her free hand against the steering wheel. "Why is A going after you? You have nothing to do with this! All you did was save Mona, you weren't trying to nail A to the wall!"

Paige chewed on her lip and squeezed Emily hand bringing her attention to her. "Actually there's something I need to tell you. It involves why I was at Mona's house the day she was attacked."

Emily's brows furrowed and she turned in her seat to give Paige her full attention.

Paige took a breath, "Remember the help I got after the Nate thing?"

Emily flinched at the mention of his name but nodded. "Caleb."

"Yeah. You asked us to stop what we were doing because it was too dangerous, and we did and Caleb moved to Ravenswood. When he came back and got back with Hanna, he realized how bad the situation was and came to me." Paige paused, unsure how her girlfriend would react to what she was about to say. "With Mona's help, we've been looking for A, that's why I was at her house the day of the attack. She thought she found something. We somehow managed to fly under the radar, and I think A figured out we were working with Mona that day, maybe she figured with a hard enough blow to the head I wouldn't remember anything but I did. That's why I'm on her list now, because we know something about her now that could help us."

The silence in the car was as cold as the wind battering it from each side. Emily had slumped in her seat, her long fingers massaging her temples. "You've been looking for A." It was phrased as a statement but sounded like a question.

"Yes we've been-" Paige began to explain before Emily cut her off as she exploded.

"Do you have any idea what A could have done to you?! You could have died in Mona's house Paige!" Emily ranted, her voice raising with every word. "Don't you see! You're supposed to get out! Prove that Rosewood can't hold anyone back, and you decide to paint a big 'ol target on your back. Now you have to watch your every move, your every word because A can twist things around so easily! You don't deserve to live like this just because you know one of A's targets!"

"Neither do you!" Paige cut in when Emily stopped long enough to take a breath, "You don't deserve what A is doing to you! You told me once that I deserve the best of everything..." Paige swallowed hard, trying to rid herself of the lump that threatened to strangle her at the mention of that day. "You do too, and I won't apologize for trying to help you live the life you deserve without some omnipresent shadow out to get you all the time! Damnit Emily, I meant it when I said there's nothing I wouldn't do to protect you. I love you too much for A to just take you away!"

Suddenly, Emily leaned over the center console and grabbed the front of Paige's jacket, pulling her closer and bringing their lips together in a heated kiss. Paige gasped at the hardness of the kiss, and Emily took advantage of that, letting Paige feel the anger, worry and love she felt. She closed her eyes and pulled Emily closer, letting her bury her feelings in the kiss.

Their moment was interrupted by tapping on the window, and they pulled apart to be met with a smirking Hanna.

Emily groaned softly and let go of a slightly stunned Paige to open the door.

"I don't want to hear it Han." Emily muttered darkly as she got out of the car.

"I didn't say anything." Hanna held up her hands in surrender, the smirk still firmly on her face. "Maybe another trip to the kitchen counter will help ease some tension." She whispered to Paige as she walked by.

Paige's eyes widened as she blushed hard, causing Hanna to laugh, and Caleb to give her a curious glance. Emily, oblivious to her girlfriend's discomfort, pulled her towards the barn.

Spencer was waiting for them and locked the door as soon as they were inside. She led them to the small kitchen where Aria was waiting, with something hot to drink for all of them.

"Are you sure it wasn't just a dream?" Spencer asked Paige after a few seconds of silence.

"I'm sure, it was definitely green eyes, not blue."

"Alison has always been manipulative." Emily grip on Paige's arm hadn't loosened since she had dragged her into the barn, but Paige could feel that she was shivering slightly. She gently eased Emily's fingers off, and pulled her closer by putting an arm around her waist. "It wouldn't surprise me at all if she had someone else doing her dirty work."

Spencer latched on and immediately started going through the names that could be connected to Alison. High on her list was Holbrook, Jenna and Cece.

"It can't be Cece." Emily stated drawing everyone's attention away from Spencer's theorizing. "Ali said she gave Cece a plane ticket to Paris." At the curious looks she continued, "She told me about it when we were in New York, I thought I was protecting you guys by not saying anything, but I was just helping Ali by creating secrets between us. I can't believe I fell for it again!"

"We've all fallen for her tricks Em." Aria squeezed her shoulder. "But now we know better, so now we can do better. Jenna's blind, and Holbrook is a guy so that leaves no one on the list."

"Unless there are new people playing the game. What did you guys find during your research?" Hanna directed at Caleb and Paige.

"We haven't done much since Paige got out of Hospital. But we were working from a motive based angle."

The girls all leaned closer to Caleb, as he explained.

"We think Alison must have done the most damage to whoever A is, our information wasn't complete because there is a lot we don't know, but now that everyone knows what we were doing, our info base can grow and we can start eliminating people. Once we can corroborate all of the information we'll be getting closer to figuring out who A is."

After a short discussion on when and where they would meet to put all they had together to try and figure it out, they split up back to their houses.

* * *

><p>Paige was exhausted, and as soon as she got back into Emily's bed she was ready to get some rest. Emily however, had other plans. The fact that Paige had been doing something so dangerous had her feeling the need to hold onto her for as long as she could to make sure the other girl didn't get hurt, or worse. She felt like a mess inside, so many people had died since A came into their lives, and she was terrified. She had been through so much, lost so much. She wasn't about to let A take Paige away. Right now she needed her girlfriend, she needed a moment to be grounded.<p>

"Paige." Emily whispered, drawing her girlfriend from her sleep.

"What's wrong Em?" Paige whispered back, her voice thick with sleep.

"I just..." Emily trailed off and decided to act instead, she turned around to face her, and she could see the worry lines on her girlfriend's face. She brushed the hair on her forehead back and close the distance between their lips. They moved slowly at first, until Emily's lips began moving in a more persistent manner causing Paige to pull away.

"Em your parents." She whispered breathlessly.

"I just need you, please."

Paige chewed on her lip, considering her options.

"Please."

Paige broke and pulled Emily closer, praying in her head that she wasn't setting herself up to be met with a shot gun the next morning. They were quiet and quick, and once it was over, Emily finally allowed herself to be lulled asleep to the sound of Paige's strong, sure heartbeat, her fist clenched tightly in the material of Paige's shirt.

* * *

><p>The next morning after breakfast, Paige left to give the Fields some family time before Wayne left. She was driving towards her house and as she passed the Marin home, she stopped, pulling her car off the road before she got out.<p>

Hanna had just gotten into the car when Paige appeared at her window.

"Hey."

Hanna jumped, her hand flying to cover her heart.

"Paige! You scared the hell out of me!"

"Sorry, I was driving by thought I'd stop and see what's up."

Hanna's fingers fidgeted on the steering wheel. "Nows really not a good time."

"Are you okay?"

"I just need to know why she'd do this." Hanna said after a tension filled silence. "I need her to stop before it gets worse."

"Okay." Paige walked around the car and got into the passenger seat. "So let's go."

"Isn't Emily.."

"It'll be fine, come on let's go."

Hanna nodded and started the car, they were halfway down the street when Paige pulled out her phone and began composing a text. "Emily, just in case." Paige shrugged at Hanna's curious glance.

The ride to the prison was silent, both trying to psych themselves up to face the girl that had tortured them relentlessly. The nerves they felt was mixed with very little optimism that maybe Alison had seen the error of her ways and would finally stop what she was doing.

It didn't take long for them to be signed in and let through multiple security gates. Hanna glanced at Paige as they were led down to Alison's cell, Paige gave her a slight smile, trying not to let her emotions show too much, especially when they were about to come face to face with someone who thrived on using those emotions to get the better of them.

When Alison walked into the room, they caught a moment of surprise cross her face before she schooled her features into the normal controlled expression she usually had.

"Surprise, surprise." Alison said as soon as she saw them enter, her brow raised when Paige entered just behind Hanna. "And you brought back up."

"Who did you think it was?" Hanna asked as the cell door was shut behind them. "Holbrook?" Hanna sat down, Paige stayed near the door, giving Hanna the space she needed to get what she wanted. "Look Ali, this isn't a visit. I came here to tell you; give up. I still know you, at least some of you and I know at every turn you've chosen to fight. But just this once, don't!"

"I already have given up." Alison shrugged slightly, sounding defeated, continuing when Hanna rolled her eyes, "That's why I'm here. I could have thrown you all under the bus, but I didn't. I kept my mouth shut. But do I get a thanks for it?" The sarcasm in her voice had Hanna's temper rising.

"What are we supposed to thank you for? Framing Spencer? Putting a knife in Mona's-"

"What knife?" Alison cut her off, "Look if I'm as clever as everyone thinks I am, wouldn't I have given myself a better alibi than my brother?"

Hanna stood, she wasn't getting anywhere with Alison, maybe coming here was a big mistake and she was ready to just go home, she turned to leave but Alison's voice brought her to a standstill, and as she spoke, , Hanna turned to face her.

"You wanna know where I was for those missing hours on thanksgiving? I was waiting for Cyrus. I got a message from him asking to meet. He sounded freaked out and I was worried he was going to expose our deal so I went. I waited for hours for him, and he never showed." She paused, glancing at the floor before meeting Hanna's eyes again, "It was only when I heard that Mona was missing that I realized that this was… a trap set by A. I would have never been able to explain that to the police. I couldn't even tell my own father, but he lied for me anyway. Hanna…If I was A.. Why would I let this happen to me?"

"I don't know, but I do know that if you are A? You're counting on that last little shred of me that gives a damn about what happens to you." Hanna paused, "And you shouldn't." She turned and walked out, Paige watched her leave, tempted to just follow her when Alison spoke.

"Why are you here? Come to gloat? Laugh in my face?"

Paige shook her head, "No, I came here to support Hanna, but right now, I think I'm the only one who doesn't think you're A."

* * *

><p>AN: Well there it is, hope you enjoyed, a slight twist on the cell scene from the show. Let me know what you think.<p> 


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